Hard to Love
by Just A Tad Bit Fanatic
Summary: Tony can be an insensitive prick, but Steve deals with him anyway.
1. I am Insensitive

**Hola amigos! And for those of you who don't speak Espanol, what's up, dudes? This is pretty much my first dabble into the Avengers fandom, constructive criticism is welcome, flames will be used to roast marshmallows. Also, just gonna say it now, Cap and Tony are in an established relationship, so, if that's not you're cup o' tea, just turn away now, and leave us Superhusband Stony lovers be. Kthanxbye!**

**Anywho, I meant no copyright infringement stuff writing this, it's just an idea that I had and it wouldn't go away so I published it.**

**Basically I was listening to Hard to Love by Lee Brice and it just popped into my head cuz the lyrics are freakin' perfect. Yes I understand that Tony doesn't do country but I don't give a fuck.**

**Enjoy? Possibly?**

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_I am insensitive,_

_ I have a tendency to pay more attention to the things that I need._

Steve stood outside of the lab watching through the glass as Tony tinkered with his newest design. He was standing in front of his holographic table, that Steve found absolutely amazing, bobbing his head to his obnoxiously loud music. Steve could see his lips moving, which meant he was either talking to himself or to Jarvis. Suddenly he stopped fiddling with the holographic model and observed it, drumming his fingers on his arc reactor. Steve's mouth quirked into a smile, he loved to watch Tony work, he could do it for hours, and sometimes he did; he would sit on a couch in the lab and sketch Tony and his machines for hours. Steve would have loved to do it right then and there but Tony had been at work for two days straight, only stopping when Steve or Bruce brought down food, and he needed sleep. Finally Steve punched in his code and entered the lab.

"Jarvis? Turn the music down please?" Steve asked as he made his way over to the genius.

"Hey, hey, no. My music is at a perfectly fine volume," Tony stated as he crumpled part of his design and threw it to the trash.

Tony, despite his previous objections, said nothing when the music was lowered to a more tolerable volume. He stopped working and turned to face Steve.

"Tony, it's time to take a break. You've been at it for two days, it's time for a real meal and sleep," Steve admonished.

"Trying to get me into bed, Cap?" Tony asked leering at Steve.

Tony leaned against the table, smirking, as Steve blushed and glanced away.

"Yes Tony, I am trying to get you into bed, to sleep."

"And nothing else?" Tony wagged his eyebrows.

"Nothing else," Steve said.

"I can sleep when I'm done with this," Tony declared, turning back to his work.

"Tony, come on. You can work on this," Steve motioned to the hologram, "after a decent night sleep."

"I'm not tired, I've got coffee, sleep is for the weak," Tony asserted before blasting off a long stream of technobabble to Jarvis.

"Because living off of coffee is oh so healthy, Tony. You seriously need sleep!" Steve exclaimed stepping closer to the irritating man.

"Just because you slept for seventy years, Captain, does not mean that I need to follow in your footsteps!"

Steve was a little dumbfounded and he stood there for several minutes just gazing at Tony, before he spun on his heel and walked out of the lab, shoulder's slumped.

When the others asked when Tony was coming up to sleep, he simply replied:

"When he's tired."

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So? Good, bad, wonderful, absolutely revolting?

I'll probably be updating within the next day or two, depending on feedback.

I hope you've enjoyed the first chapter of Hard to Love.


	2. Sometimes, I Drink To Much

**Welp, here's chapter 2! I hope you guys are enjoying this, I know that I am.**

**Again no copywrite intended.**

**Enjoy!**

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_Sometimes I drink too much,_

_Sometimes I test your trust,_

_Sometimes I dunno know why you stay with me_

It had been a few months since the 'lab incident' as most of the team called it. It had been a brutal week after that, Tony had know that he'd fucked up and that he needed to fix it. To say that things were a bit strained would be a tremendous understatement.

Luckily, Tony had found a fantastic place to take Steve to, it was a little Jazz cafe that played jazz from the 40's and had fantastic coffee. They had spoke over coffee and doughnuts. They agreed that Tony wasn't allowed to be in the lab for more than thirty-six hours at a time, unless he took breaks to sleep on the couch there (and Steve would know, he had Jarvis on his side). Tony was reluctant to agree but after some persuasion from Steve he agreed. Of course, Tony still had slip-ups were he would snap at Steve and Steve would somewhat shut down, but most of the time things were resolved within a matter of hours at best, and days at the worst.

Tonight was different though. Tonight there was some benefit that both Pepper and Fury demanded that the Avengers go to for good publicity. While none of the Avengers particularly liked these events, Tony loathed them. You wouldn't notice though, with the mask he had plastered firmly in place. And Tony, being Tony, was completely hammered. Steve, being the Captain of the group, thought it was his responsibility to float around to each member of the group and make sure that they were doing okay.

Somewhere in between small talk with Bruce and strategy planning with Thor it started to go downhill. Most women didn't seem to catch the fact that Tony was in a committed relationship, they didn't seem to connect that Iron Man and Captain America were Tony Stark and Steve Rogers. So, they hung all over Tony, all night. And let's just say that Drunk Tony didn't make the best decisions.

Steve knew that Tony loved him, really he did, but it still hurt immensely when Tony started to get a little too handsy with some blonde bombshell in an incredibly slinky dress. He said goodnight to Thor and weaved through the crowd to get to Tony, stopping just behind him. Steve quickly, but gently, grabbed Tony's wrist as he went to snatch yet another drink from a tray that floated past.

"I think you've had enough Tony," Steve asserted.

"Steve, babe!" Tony exclaimed loudly, "This is Candy, she wants to join us, whatcha think?"

Of course, it didn't sound that way, it sounded more like "Thish's Candy, she wans ta joinish, whatcha thnk?" Steve, even though he barely understood, got the gist. He blushed, and once again wondered how so much had changed in seventy years. People had sex in the 40's, he wasn't going to deny that, but it was put out there so blatantly, it was hardly spoken about.

"I think it's time to go home Tony," Steve glanced at the blonde, "alone."

"Aw, come on Captain, it'd be loads of fun," Candy said with what was supposed to be some sort of sexy gaze.

It was obvious that Candy had had one to many champagnes, but she wasn't even close to the level that Tony was on.

"I'm sorry Miss, but we are in an exclusively closed relationship, have a good night," Steve replied as politely as he could.

Steve wrapped his hand around Tony's upper arm and dragged him away from the blonde, it was quite obvious that Tony had been using the girl as a crutch, because he could hardly stand up straight.

"Steve, baby, wheres we goin'?" Tony slurred as Steve practically dragged him out of the building.

"We are going home, and you are going to bed to sleep of the ridiculous amount of alcohol you drank," Steve replied, hailing a cab.

They had taken a limo, driven by Happy to the gala, and Steve didn't want to make Happy drive the two of them home and then have to go back and get the rest of the team. Tony protested weakly about taking a cab but soon passed out. Steve weakly smiled down at his unconscious partner. He knew it was pointless to try and talk Tony out of drinking, they had gotten into all out screaming matches about the subject before and it had gotten them nowhere except separate bedrooms.

"Come on Tony, we're home," Steve muttered, knowing that it wouldn't help.

He got out of the cab and wrapped an arm around Tony's waist to support him while he got the money to pay for the fare. He pulled a fifty out of his wallet and handed it to the driver.

"Keep the change," he said kindly before lifting Tony completely.

"Thank you son!" Exclaimed the cab driver as he started to drive away.

It hadn't taken much to carry Tony to the elevator and to there room. Steve managed to have a small stroke of luck when Tony came out of unconsciousness for a bit. From there it was rather easy to coax Tony out of his tux, into his pajama bottoms, and into bed. Be that as it may, Steve felt drained. Instead of brushing his teeth, he grabbed a couple of aspirin and placed them on the nightstand on Tony's side of the bed along with a glass of water. He flopped onto the bed and stared at the ceiling for a short amount of time, thinking about everything that happened, before he rolled onto his side and curled himself around Tony.

* * *

Tony opened his eyes and blinked slowly as the night's events slowly came back to him. He groaned rather loudly.

"Did I really ask a slutty blonde to have a threesome with us?" He moaned as he groped for the aspirin he knew that Steve set out for him.

"Yes, you did," Steve mumbled sleepily into his ear.

"Oh my God. I don't know how or why you put up with me," Tony bemoaned.

Truthfully, Steve didn't even know sometimes, but he did, and that was all that mattered.

_I'm hard to love, hard to love,_

_I don't make it easy,_

_I couldn't do it if I stood where you stood,_

_I'm hard to love, hard to love,_

_No I don't make it easy,_

_I don't deserve it but I love that you love me good_

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**Woo! 'Nother chapter down! Yay! Update should be in a few days, hopefully...**


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